Zalman CNPS9700 NT CPU Cooler Review

Introduction

Today we are going to review another CPU cooler from Zalman, CNPS9700 NT. Its design is very different from the ones we are used to see, with three 8-shaped heatpipes, nickel-plated looks and a 110-mm fan. Let’s check if its performance beats coolers based on the "tower" design.

Besides CNPS9700 NT Zalman also offers NPS9700 LED, which has as main difference the absence of the nickel-plated looks, with a plain copper color on its fins, heatpipes and base. The CNPS9500 series have a similar design, but being a little smaller, with a 92-mm fan.

CNPS9700 NT box looks nice in green shades. It is possible to see the fan and part of the heatsink from a plastic transparent window.

Figure 1: Box.

Inside the box we found the cooler, a user manual, installing hardware, a gray thermal compound tube and a case sticker.

Figure 2: Box contents.

In Figure 3 you can have a general view of CNPS9700 NT. It does not look like any other cooler we have already reviewed. Fins, heatpipes and base are made of pure copper, but nickel-plated for a dark metal looks just like Zalman CNPS10X Extreme we reviewed some weeks ago.

Figure 3: CNPS9700 NT.

The 110-mm fan is mounted inside the heatsink, attached to the cooler base by two metallic holders.